Mark Battles

Mark Anthony Battles (born September 2, 1991) is an American rapper, songwriter, entrepreneur and producer from Indianapolis, Indiana. Battles is the founder of Fly America, an independent hip hop record label.[1]

Mark Battles
Birth nameMark Anthony Battles
Born (1991-09-02) September 2, 1991
Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
GenresHip hop
Occupation(s)songwriter, Producer Rapper
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active2011–present
Labels
  • Fly America / After the platinum
Websitewww.markbattlesmusic.com

In 2012, Battles released his first mixtape Walking Distance and gained online recognition for his song "Last Night", which placed second on MTVu and was later remixed by Kid Ink.[2] He has worked closely with Wale, Dizzy Wright, French Montana and Kevin Gates, overall releasing a dozen mixtapes including a collaboration project with Tory Lanez and King Los, surpassing a million digital downloads.[3][4][5]

In October 2015, Battles released his first independent album Numb, which peaked at #25 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop and Heatseeker charts.[6] In 2016, Battles was named alongside Kendrick Lamar and YG in 5 Influential Rappers On Mental Health Stigma by The Huffington Post.[7] In 2017 Battles released a project titled “Day 2” which featured artists such as Brittani Jenae and Tory Lanez. The following year in 2018, Battles released a project titled “Vasi World” that he admits was not his best effort despite overwhelming positive feedback. Most recently he has released a project titled “Fortunate” which consists of zero features and his second most commercially successful song, “Numb.”

Early life

Mark Anthony Battles was born on September 2, 1991, in Indianapolis, Indiana. His mother is Chiffonda Ducking. He has 2 brothers named Anthony and Carl, and one sister.[8] Battles and his siblings were raised in the urban, poor communities of Indianapolis, having lived in several homeless shelters during the early part of his childhood. However, it wasn't until he began high school that things got a bit better for his mother.

He began rapping under a different stage name before using his current rap name. He graduated as Class of 2009 from Pike High School located in northern Indianapolis. His inspiration for music originated from hip hop icons such as Big Pun, Drake, Eminem and 2Pac.

On August 31, 2006, his brother Carl Battles was riding the backseat of his sister Aishareika's car to school. In the morning hours, Aishareika's car collided with a pick up truck on Northwestern Side near 71st street near their school Pike High School.[8] Carl, Aishareika and Mark were rushed to the hospital, however shortly after arriving at the hospital, Carl was pronounced dead.[9] Local media reports state that both cars were speeding on a yellow light, and as a result of the accident prompted the roads near the school to be enforced with speed cameras.[10]

In several songs performed by Battles, including "One For The Money", he mentions and pays tribute to his brother Carl. His brother Carl was, according to Battles, the reason for his motivation to pursue a music career.

Musical career

2011–2012: Career beginnings

Mark started rapping officially at age 15. Mark started his own independent record label called Fly America in 2011, which is a brand that is heard throughout his music. In 2012, Mark released his first mixtape called Walking Distance with appearances by Kid Ink, Lola Monroe and King Los. Walking Distance went on to be certified gold on DatPiff, having over 100,000 digital downloads. Mark's music video single Last Night was remixed by Kid Ink and was released without a music video. Most of the material in the mixtape was produced by Mark's DJ & producer, DJ Yung 1. Mark's most famous singles were "Ugh Oh" featuring Los, and Last Night, which was featured on MTVu Freshman and hit second place for air time on MTV.[11][12]

Mark has remixed numerous famous hip hop songs which have appeared on his mixtapes. On November 2012, Mark released the first part of his mixtape series Saturday School. In 2012, Mark Battles went on tour with MMG recording artist Rockie Fresh.[13]

2013–2015: Mixtape Series & Numb

In 2013, Battles released his 3 part Saturday School mixtape series, along with a national tour that included a sold-out show alongside Bad Boy rapper MGK. On December 27, 2013, he released his collaboration mixtape with King Los. The mixtape Broken Silence was released in 2013 and artists featured include Wale, Curren$y, Ab-Soul, French Montana, Dizzy Wright, Cyhi Da Prynce and Chevy Woods.[14] The first single was released titled "Got A Feeling" which featured Wale and former Fly America rapper Derek Luh.[15][16] On August 12, 2014, Battles released another mixtape titled "Preseason".[17][18]

On October 2, 2015, Battles released his debut studio album "Numb", which was released independently on iTunes. The album peaked at #25 on the U.S. Billboard Heatseekers charts and reached #39 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop charts.[6]

2016-2017: Before The Deal & Day 2

On May 13, 2016, Battles announced on his Twitter account a partnership deal with iconic music producer No ID's record label ARTium Recordings, a division of Def Jam Records.[1] The deal came after the release of a dozen musical projects and national tours, respectively.[19] Shortly after, Battles announced his latest musical project "Before The Deal" and released a music video for the single "No Love" featuring Futuristic and King Los.[20]

On May 31, 2016, Battles released his second studio album "Before the Deal", for digital release.[21] Within a couple of hours after its release, Before the Deal topped at #8 on the Top Rap album iTunes charts. On the week of June 18, 2016, Before the Deal debuted on Billboard's Top Heatseekers charts at #15.[22] A nationwide tour was announced called "The Before The Deal Tour", which began in June 2016. Throughout 2016, Battles has collaborated with several recording artists including Dizzy Wright, Audio Push and Locksmith.[23][24][25] In Summer of 2016, Mark Battles became one of three artists as part of Dizzy Wright's "Still Movin" tour with Audio Push.[26][27][28]

In September 2016, Battles collaborated with fellow Indianapolis native Dorian for the official remix of Dorian's hit single "Don't Sleep".[29][30]

In November 2016, Battles was interviewed by XXL magazine, in which he stated he described his relationship with producer NO I.D. as "The new kid on the block." After the radio interview, several hip hop artists including Nebraska rapper HAKIM, expressed their inspiration for Battles' comeup.[31]

On May 26, 2017, in collaboration with Quality Control Music founder Coach K, Battles released a studio album with Tory Lanez called Day 2, which received mainstream radio airplay in the US.

2018-present: Vasi World EP

On February 9, 2018, Battles released his Vasi World EP with Fly America and Quality Control Music. The following month, he announced the Vasi World Spring Tour featuring DJ Yung 1, T.Fitz, 12Fifteen, and King Kap.

Fly America
Fly America
Founded2011
FounderMark Battles, DJ Yung 1
StatusActive
GenreHip Hop
Country of originUnited States

Fly America (FA) is an American independent hip-hop record company founded by Mark Battles, the label's landmark recording artist. In 2016, Battles announced a partnership deal with No ID's imprint ARTium Recordings, a part of Def Jam Records; however, in 2017, Battles formed a partnership with Atlanta music manager Coach K.[1] Since its creation, in 2011, former hip hop recording artist Derek Luh, Jace Houston, King Kap, Brittani Jenae, and DJ Yung 1 have been signed to Fly America.

Current artists
  • Mark Battles[32]
  • 12Fifteen
  • Brittani Jenae
  • DJ Yung 1 (DJ/Producer)

Former artists
  • Derek Luh
  • Jace Houston

Discography

Studio albums
List of albums, with selected chart positions and sales figures
Title Album details Peak chart positions
Top Heatseekers
[33]		 US
R&B
[34]
Numb 2539
Title Album details Peak chart positions
Top Heatseekers
[35]		 US
R&B
Before The Deal 15--
  • Day 2 (2017)

Mixtapes
  • Good Morning America (2011)
  • Walking Distance (2012)
  • Saturday School (2011)
  • Saturday School 2 (2012)
  • Saturday School 3 (2012)
  • Broken Silence (2013)
  • Black Einstein (2014)
  • Preseason (2014)
  • Lost In Reality (2015) (with Dizzy Wright and Euroz)
  • Shelter Food (2015)
  • Until September (2015)
  • Vasi World (2018)
  • Foturnate (2018)
  • Fortunate2 (2019)

Tours
Year Tour Name
2018 Vasi World Spring Tour
2017 Day 2 Tour
2016 Still Movin Tour[36]
2016 Indy Homecoming Show[1][37]
2016 The Before The Deal Tour[38]
2015 The Numb Tour
2014 The Dreams 2 Reality Tour[39][40]

See also

References
  1. Lindquist, David (2016-09-14). "Meet Mark Battles, the rapper who's ready to come home". Indy Star.
  2. "Mark Battles "Last Night"". MTV. 2012-07-26.
  3. Baker, Soren (2013-12-30). "King Los & Mark Battles "Broken Silence" Release Date, Cover Art, Download & Mixtape Stream". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on 2015-01-13. Retrieved 2014-01-04.
  4. "Premiere: Mark Battles Feat. French Montana And Derek Luh 'Cant Stand Us". Vibe. 2013-10-17.
  5. Griffen, Sam (2013-12-30). "New Mixtape: King Los & Mark Battles – Broken Silence". Respect. Magazine.
  6. "Mark Battles: Billboard Chart History". Billboard. 2016-05-17.
  7. "5 Influential Rappers That Broke The Mental Health Stigma". The Huffington Post. 2016-07-27.
  8. Davis, Linsey (2006-09-01). "Family mourns Pike student's death". NBC.
  9. "Counselors Help Pike Students Deal With Fatal Crash". ABC News. 2006-09-01.
  10. Spehler, Dan (2013-05-16). "Speed enforcement cameras in Indiana school zones?". FOX.
  11. "You Pick The Video That Gets On Air". MTV. 2012-10-08.
  12. "Mark Battles - Ugh Oh (ft. Los)". VEVO (YouTube). 2013-11-27.
  13. Swift, B (2012-11-25). "Naptown's Mark Battles On Tour w MMG Rockie Fresh and decided to show". Hot 96.3.
  14. Fall, Kyle (2013-12-27). "King Los & Mark Battles – Broken Silence (Mixtape)". Rapdose.
  15. Shipley, Al (2014-01-02). "Los Collaborates With Mark Battles and Wale On New Mixtape". CityPaper.
  16. Lilah, Rose (2014-01-28). "Mark Battles Announces Black Einstein". HotNewHipHop.
  17. "Mark Battles Preseason Datpiff". Datpiff. 2014-01-28.
  18. "Fly America Presents: MARK BATTLES Plus Guests". CBS News. 2016-11-15.
  19. "Mark Battles - Before The Deal Tour". The Salt Lake Tribune. 2016-06-26.
  20. ""No Love" Video: Mark Battles Feat Futuristic and King Los". HotNewHipHop. 2016-05-24.
  21. Beam, Scottie (2016-05-23). "Hot 97: Who's Next Playlist". Hot 97.
  22. Kellman, Andy (2016-12-11). "Mark Battles' Biography & Billboard Chart History: AllMusic". AllMusic.
  23. Hunte, Justin (2016-08-15). "Dizzy Wright Announces Still Movin Tour With Audio Push, Demrick & Mark Battles". HipHopDX.
  24. Ivey, Justin (2016-09-12). "Locksmith Unleashes the "Grime"". XXL Mag.
  25. "NEW VIDEO: LOCKSMITH X MARK BATTLES: "EPIC"". RapRadar. 2016-11-01.
  26. Hunte, Justin (2016-08-15). "Dizzy Wright Announces Still Movin Tour With Audio Push, Demrick & Mark Battles". HipHopDX.
  27. Goddard, Kevin (2016-08-15). "Dizzy Wright Announces "Still Movin" Tour With Audio Push, Mark Battles & Demrick". HotNewHipHop.
  28. "Dizzy Wright, DJ Hoppa, Audio Push, Mark Battles, Demrick". LA Weekly. 2016-10-02.
  29. "Dont Sleep (Remix) [feat. Mark Battles]". Apple Music. Retrieved 2017-07-02.
  30. "Dorian (rapper) - Don't Sleep (remix) feat. Mark Battles". Discogs. 2016-09-01. Retrieved 2017-07-02.
  31. Crisler, Sam (2016-12-08). "Local rapper welcomes struggle of going big, strives to inspire". The Daily Nebraskan.
  32. Trexxx, DJ (2016-11-23). "XXL Magazine Radio - Mark Battles Interview". XXL.
  33. "Top Heatseekers - Billboard US Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  34. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - Billboard US Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  35. "Top Heatseekers - Billboard US Charts". Billboard. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  36. Anand, Raj (2016-08-15). "Dizzy Wright Announces The 'Still Movin' Tour With Audio Push, Mark Battles And Demrick". Uproxx.
  37. "Hot 96.3 - Indy Homecoming Show, Mark Battles". Hot 96.3. 2016-09-16.
  38. "Mark Battles Live In Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall". CBS News. 2016-07-05.
  39. Lyons, Patrick (2014-08-21). "Mark Battles Announces The "Dreams 2 Reality" Tour, Sponsored By HNHH". HotNewHipHop.
  40. Swift, B (2014-06-10). "Mark Battles – "The Dreams 2 Reality" Tour Vlog #1 (Behind The Scenes)". Hot 96.3.
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